Skill India Invests Around 40 Crore in Skill Development Under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana

Continuing the bid to create a skilled ecosystem through inter-Ministry partnerships, the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) today signed a MoU with the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) for the skill upgradation and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) certification of Refrigeration and Air-conditioning (RAC) technicians for the benefit of the environment and better employment opportunities.

Besides giving a boost to the Hon’ble Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi’s vision of Skill India, the collaboration between the two ministries marks an important step towards the country’s commitment to a better and cleaner environment by addressing the issue of ozone layer protection and reduction in indirect Green House Gas (GHG) emissions from refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment.

The Memorandum of Understanding between the two Ministries was signed today at a ceremony held in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the august presence of Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas and Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

Applauding the initiative between the two ministries, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, said, “MSDE has made an investment of around 40 crore in skill training of one lakh RAC service technicians under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, with the help of Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change. This is great example of Ministries working together to make the New India of our dreams. It is imperative that Ministries work closely
in conjunction with the respective Sector Skill Councils to identify the new age job roles which are market relevant today, map their demand and co-create curriculum and pedagogy to ensure a robust skill training ecosystem and its outcome in terms of the productive workforce that India will have. I urge the industry to make equal contribution
towards training of such technicians so that we further strengthen our industries and our youth. The focus on skill development should be as much as we have on research and production today.”

Addressing the audience at the event, Dr. Harsh Vardhan said, “India is being globally lauded for its green initiatives and commitment to the environment and climate change. Under the able guidance of Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, we are now being seen as trail blazers in all clean and green energy. Skill India is great endeavour
by the government that also acts as a catalyst for bringing about this change by skilling, up-skilling and re-skilling technicians to bring down the emission of harmful GHG. I feel privileged and honoured to be a part of launch of the unique project and we ensure its efficient implementation and monitoring.”

India has been witnessing high growth in the air-conditioning (AC) market. The demand for air conditioners in India is expected to grow by 8.2 million per year by 2020 and 20 million per year by 2030. Refrigerants used in ACs are either Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) or have extremely high global warming potential. Refrigerants leak out of ACs during normal operation and due to poor servicing practices, causing adverse impacts to the environment. As a result, over 50% of refrigerant consumption is in the RAC servicing sector.

It is estimated that presently out of the total employment base of 6 lakh, there are around 2 lakh refrigeration and air-conditioning (RAC) service technicians in the country, who are in the informal sector.